Education and Outreach News

One of iUTAH’s core missions is the education and diversification of the next generation of our state’s STEM workforce. To help us achieve this mission, iUTAH has supported the production of a new book on water by author/educator Nancy Bo Flood, who has published several books written from a Navajo perspective. “Water Runs Through This Book,” illustrated by Jan Sonnenmair’s photographs, weaves science and poetry together to stimulate awareness of and a conservation ethic toward water among readers of all ages. With the help of this book, raising awareness will be a focus of iUTAH education and outreach activities to diverse communities in the coming year.

How do we engage middle school students in science? It’s easy, DO science with them! We all know that science is not a collection of facts in a textbook, it is a process of discovery. iUTAH WaterGirls was developed as a collaboration between Salt Lake Community College, Salt Lake City School District, and iUTAH to get middle school girls out into nature exploring their local outdoor environment and learning for themselves about water in Utah’s canyons.

Studies show that the middle school years are a critical time when female students begin to lose interest in a STEM career. An affective method to retain female students’ interest in science and desire for a career in STEM is laboratory and field experiences. Exposure to field research helps students experience the true nature of science and research, while nurturing a sense of curiosity about the world around them.

During WaterGirls, students visited field sites in Little and Big Cottonwood Canyons to assess the health of streams and watersheds near their homes. On each field day students were tasked with collecting water quality data, including pH, temperature, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, and dissolved oxygen. They also collected and identified macro-invertebrates found living in the streams. Weather observations were completed, using hand-held instruments to record temperature, wind, and humidity, as well as cloud and precipitation data. Students discussed and analyzed their data to determine how these values change at different sites and in different canyons, what the data tells them, and what that data tells them about health of these streams and watersheds. Scientists, including hydrologists, ecologists, meteorologists, biologists, geologists, and chemists, led the students in their sampling and acted as mentors. Volunteers from Salt Lake Community College, Salt Lake City School District, University of Utah, and the Colorado Basin River Forecast Center, all taught the students and shared their expertise.

Following the field experience, students attended a wrap-up and reflection session to communicate their findings to audiences of their choosing. This could include their fellow students, their families, the general community, or others. The goal of this step was to help students improve communication skills and demonstrate their interest in science to others. By communicating the impact of water systems, students begin to create ownership of both their environment and their interest in STEM fields.

The SciTech Now series being broadcast on UEN-TV, captures the latest breakthroughs in science, technology and innovation. This Monday, January 26th at 8:30pm, SciTech Now’s will feature “iUTAH: Science for Utah’s Water Future” the statewide EPSCoR project to study water use throughout the state. Visit the UEN-TV web site to find your translator station. If you’re unable to watch Monday evening, you can view past episodes on uen.org/scitechnow after the program has aired. These programs are also broken down into segments for educational use. The iUTAH video was also selected to air nationally with other public UEN TV partners.

Trinity is a first year graduate student under Dr. Bethany Neilson in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Utah State University. His research interests include understanding the spatial and temporal variability in groundwater/surface water interactions. Trinity grew up on a small farm in the southern Utah town of Hurricane, where he saw first-hand the importance of water use and conservation. He later developed an interest in research while completing his undergraduate degree at Utah State, where he chose to join iUTAH and become part of a larger research effort focused on water sustainability. When he is not working or studying, Trinity enjoys fly fishing and hiking with his wife, or working on projects around the house.

Michelle Barnes grew up in the Reno-Tahoe, Nevada area. Her love of the outdoors was influential in pursuing her degrees in Environmental Engineering. Michelle received, a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Nevada, Reno and a Master’s degree from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. While in Alaska, she investigated groundwater dynamics in degrading, discontinuous permafrost and the impacts on contaminant transport. Michelle is now pursuing a PhD at Utah State University under the direction of Dr. Bethany Neilson. She is eager to diversify her skill set by studying groundwater/surface water interactions as part of RFA1.